Sheet folding apparatus



Oct. 12, 1965 s. T. STOOTHOFF 3,211,448

SHEET FOLDING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 16, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. STANLEY T. STOOTHOFF BY gm M/ ATTO EYS United States Patent 3,211,448 SHEET FOLDING APPARATUS Stanley T. Stoothoff, Glen Rock, N.J., assignor to Miehle- (loss-Dexter, Incorporated, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 16, 1963, Ser. No. 309,124 Claims. (Cl. 270-68) This invention is directed to an apparatus for folding sheets of paper and more particularly to a buckle type folding apparatus.

The conventional buckle type of folding apparatus comprises a plurality of fold plates each of which is positioned adjacent a pair of folding rolls. Each fold plate comprises an upper and lower spaced apart plate with a sheet receiving space therebetween. A stop member extends into the sheet receiving space to limit the movement of the leading edge of each fed sheet into said space. When the leading edge of the fed sheet strikes the stop member that portion of the sheet outside the fold plate buckles and is fed toward the bite of the fold rolls where the sheet is folded. The fold rolls then feed the folded edge into the next fold plate. The folding is thus continued through as many folding steps as there are fold rolls and fold plates. Sometimes it is desirable to by-pass certain of the fold plates and sheet guiding means are provided to deflect the leading edge from entering the sheet receiving space in the fold plate and to feed the leading edge into the bite of the next feed rolls and into the next fold plate. In prior buckle type folding machines this sheet guiding means for deflecting the sheet has consisted of means which are lifted into and out of the area immediately in front of the fold plates. Not only have the prior deflecting devices been of complicated construction but they are required to be moved from one location to another which takes time. In the present day high speed folders the speed of operation of the sheet guiding means is important as well as is the accuracy of the positioning of the fold. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a fold plate combination having a novel sheet guiding blade which is of simple construction and capable of operation at a high rate of speed.

Another object is to provide a novel sheet guiding blade for use with a fold plate which has a minimum of movement between its deflecting and non-deflecting positions.

Another object is to provide a novel sheet guiding blade for use with a fold plate which is utilized either as a portion of the fold plate or to deflect the sheet from the fold plate.

Another object is to provide a novel sheet folding apparatus having a sheet guiding blade, an edge of which remains stationary and another portion which is selectively operable between a sheet feeding and a sheet deflecting position relative to the fold plate.

Another object is to provide a folding apparatus having a folding plate and a sheet Iguiding blade which remains in a stationary position relative to sheet feed rolls to selectively either direct the sheet into the fold plate or away from the fold plate.

Another object of the present invention is to form a sheet guiding means as a part of a fold plate thus permitting the fold plates to be positioned closely together to form a more compact unit.

A still further object is to provide a novel fold plate having upper and lower plate members, a portion of the lower plate member being movable to block a sheet from entering between said upper and lower plates.

The above and further objects and novel features of the present invention will more fully appear from the following detailed description when the same is read in connection with the accompanying drawings. It is to be exice pressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only, and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views,

FIG. 1 is a cross section elevational view of a folding apparatus embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the folding apparatus taken along line 22 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 3 is a partial cross sectional elevational view, like FIG. 1, showing the sheet guiding blade in sheet guiding position; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side elevational view taken along line 44 of FIG. 2 and showing the means for securing the sheet guiding blade to a pivotal mounting.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, a pair of spaced apart side frames 10 and 11 support a series of folding rolls 12, 13, 14 and 15. Rolls 13 and 15 have their ends rotatably mounted in the side frames 10 and 11 in a fixed position. Roll 12 has each end rotatably mounted in one end of a lever 16 and each lever 16 is in turn pivotally mounted at 17 to the side frames 10 and 11 respectively. An adjustable stop member 18 is secured to the side frames 10 and 11 to limit the movement of the outer end of each lever 16 as shown in FIG. 1. An adjustable spring loaded pressure member 19 contacts the inner end of each lever 16 whereby a predetermined pressure is exerted at each end of the roll 12 to force the surface of roll 12 against the Surface of roll 13. An adjustable spring loaded pressure member 20' is secured to each end of roll 14 whereby the surface of roll 14 is held in contact with the surfaces of rolls 13 and 15 under a selective predetermined pressure. A fold plate 20 is associated with rolls 13, 14 and 15 and a fold plate 21 is associated with rolls 12, 13 and 14. In the embodiment disclosed there are shown two fold plates but it is to be understood that additional fold plates and fold rolls could be employed in accordance with any requirements as to the number and character of the folds that are to be made in the sheets. For example, the fixed roll 13 and resiliently mounted roll 12 are mounted to feed the folded sheet from the last of a series of fold plates to a tray or other suitable collecting apparatus or carry away conveyor. If more than two fold plates are utilized, as shown in the drawings, then roll 12 would be displaced upwardly and another fixed roll and a resiliently mounted roll similar to rolls 13 and 14 would then be interposed in the disclosed manner between rolls 12 and 13.

Fold plates 20 and 21 each comprise grid-like upper and lower plates 22 and 23 secured together in spaced relation to form a sheet receiving space therebetween and supported in a suitable manner between frames 10 and 11. Each fold plate is provided with a plurality of sheet stops 24 spaced along the fold plate to selectively determine the distance that the leading edge of the fed sheet can enter said sheet receiving space and thus to determine the width of the fold to be made. Thus, if a sheet of paper were to be folded into three parts it would necessitate two folds. Knowing in advance the total length of the sheet to be folded, the appropriate sheet stops would be actuated to limit the movement of the leading edge of the sheet into the sheet receiving space of the fold plate to form a buckle in the sheet adjacent the fold plate and to feed the buckled portion to the bite of rolls 13 and 14. Each of the sheet stops comprises an L-shaped member 25 secured at one end to a rod 26 positioned below the lower plate and rotatably mounted therein. A lever 27 is secured to the outside end of rod 26 whereby rotation of the rod may be effected. The lower plate has suitable openings to permit the outer end of the L-shaped member 25 to move into operative posi- 3 tion between the upper and lower plates 22 and 23 upon rotation of rod 26 as described above.

A sheet guiding blade 30 has a sheet guiding surface 31, a lower edge 32, an upper edge 33, and a rearwardly extending ledge 34. Blade 30 is mounted for pivotal movement about lower edge 32 by the following construction. As more clearly shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 a bracket 35 is positioned adjacent each end of the blade 30. Each bracket 35 has its inner ends secured to the frame portion of the lower plate 23 and each has a pivot point 36 at its outer end. A blade supporting arm 37 is secured to each end of the blade 30. Each of the arms 37 is secured at one end to the under surface of the rearwardly extending ledge 34 of blade 30 and pivotally mounted at the other end to the pivot point 36. The lower edge 32 of blade 30 is in axial alignment with the pivot point 36 so that this edge of the blade remains stationary at all times. In FIG. 1 the blade 30 is shown in position to deflect sheets away from the fold plate having been pivoted about edge 32. In FIG. 3 there is shown the position of the blade 30 whereby blade edge 33 is in contact with the end of the lower plate 23 so that the sheet guiding surface 31 of blade 30 forms an angular continuation of the upper surface of the lower plate 23 to direct the leading edge of each sheet into the sheet receiving space of the fold plate. The mechanism for operating the pivotally mounted blade 30 comprises a pair of link hinge mechanisms 38 spaced along the rearwardly extending ledge 34 of blade 30. Each of the link hinge mechanisms comprises a hinge 39 which is secured to the ledge 34 of blade 30 and is pivotally connected to one end of a connecting link 40. The other end of link 40 is pivotally connected to one end of a lever 41. The other end of lever 41 is fixedly secured to a shaft 42 which extends transversely of the fold plate and has its ends mounted in suitable bearing surfaces in the fold plate frame. The ends of shaft 42 extend beyond the fold plate and have secured to them actuating levers 43 for effecting the rotation of shaft 42. Thus, by means of the operating levers 43 the blade 30 is selectively moved from its first position where the sheet guiding surface 31 forms an extension of the lower plate 23 to its second position where the sheet guiding surface 31 is approximately at right angles to the top surface of the lower plate 23 and serves to deflect the leading edge of each sheet fed between rollers 14 and 15 and to direct said leading edge into the bite of rolls 13 and 14.

In operation, a sheet of paper to be folded is fed by manual or automatic means along the top surface of a bridge 44 and into the bite of rolls 14 and 15. As shown in FIG. 3, blade 30 is positioned so that its sheet guiding surface 31 directs the sheet of paper into the fold plate 20 against a stop 24 whereby the sheet will be buckled and folded between rolls 13 and 14 and the folded edge will then be fed upwardly into the fold plate 21 where the sheet will again be buckled and folded between rolls 12 and 13 in a manner well understood in the art. If it is desired not to utilize the fold plate 20, the lever 43 is moved in a counterclockwise direction as shown in FIG. 3 which through the lever 41 and linkage 40 causes the blade 30 to pivot around its lower edge 32 to the position shown in FIG. 1 whereby the sheet guiding surface 31 deflects the leading edge of the sheet and directs it into the bite of rolls 13 and 14. The fold plate 21 has associated with it an identically constructed and operated sheet guiding blade 30.

If desired the shaft 42 of the link hinge mechanism 38 may be operated by a conventional solenoid to effect the movement of said blade between its deflecting and sheet guiding positions. Likewise, the operation of each of the stop members 24 in the fold plates may be operated by means of a conventional solenoid which replaces the operating lever 27. In such an embodiment the solenoid is connected in such a manner as to effect a partial rotation of rod 26 to selectively move each stop member into and out of operative position. An embodiment utilizing solenoids permits the proper selection of the fold plate stops and the use or by-passing of each fold plate from a central position by means of suitable control buttons and electrical wiring. Furthermore, the use of solenoids makes it possible to feed an assortment of different sheet lengths to said folding apparatus. By providing a sensing means on the feed table 44 to measure the length of each sheet the stops 24 and blades 30 may be placed in proper position for folding the measured sheet length just prior to the time that the measured length is fed into the first fold plate.

While the description and accompanying drawings set forth with more or less particularity one embodiment of the invention, it is to be expressly understood that said invention is not limited to said embodiment. For a definition of the limits of the invention, reference is had primarily to the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for folding paper the combination of a pair of spaced apart roll members rotatively mounted in fixed positions, a roll member resiliently mounted between said pair of rolls, means to press said resiliently mounted roll into contact with each of said pair of rolls, a fold plate positioned opposite said resiliently mounted roll, said fold plate comprising spaced apart upper and lower plates forming a sheet receiving space therebetween, a sheet guiding blade having a sheet guiding surface being pivotally mounted in operative relationship with one end of said lower fold plate, means to move said sheet guiding surface of said blade between a first position forming an extension of said lower fold plate and a second position for deflecting sheets from entering said space between said upper and lower plates.

2. In an apparatus for folding paper the combination of a pair of spaced apart roll members rotatively mounted in fixed positions, a roll member resiliently mounted between said pair of rolls, means to press said resiliently mounted roll into contact with each of said pair of rolls, a fold plate positioned opposite said resiliently mounted roll, said fold plate comprising spaced apart upper and lower plates forming a sheet receiving space therebetween, a sheet guiding blade having a sheet guiding surface positioned in operative relationship with one end of said lower fold plate, means for mounting said blade for pivotal movement about one edge of said blade, and means to actuate said pivotal mounting means whereby said sheet guiding surface of said blade is selectively movable between a first position forming an extension of said lower fold plate and a second position to deflect sheets from entering said space between said fold plates.

3. In an apparatus for folding paper the combination of a pair of spaced apart roll members rotatively mounted in fixed positions, a roll member resiliently mounted between said pair of rolls, means to press said resiliently mounted roll into contact with each of said pair of rolls, a fold plate positioned opposite said resiliently mounted roll, said fold plate comprising spaced apart upper and lower plates forming a sheet receiving space therebetween, a sheet guiding blade having a sheet guiding surface operatively positioned adjacent one end of said lower fold plate, means for mounting said blade for pivotal movement about a fixed line extending through one edge of said blade, and means to actuate said pivotal mounting means whereby said sheet guiding surface of said blade is selectively movable between a first position forming an extension of said lower fold plate and a second position to deflect sheets from entering said space between said fold plates.

4. In an apparatus for folding paper the combination of a fold plate and a sheet guiding blade, said fold plate comprising an upper plate and a spaced apart lower plate forming a sheet receiving space therebetween, said blade positioned in operative relationship with one end of said lower plate, said blade comprising a guiding surface onone side thereof and first and second edges, means for mounting said blade for pivotal movement about said first blade edge remote from said one end of the lower plate, and means to actuate said pivotal mounting means whereby said blade is selectively movable between a position whereby said second blade edge is adjacent said one end of the lower fold plate and whereby said guiding surface forms an extension of said lower plate and a position whereby said second blade edge is spaced from said one end of the lower fold plate and said guiding surface obstructs entry of a sheet into said sheet receiving space between said upper and lower plates.

5. In an apparatus for folding paper the combination of a fold plate and a sheet guiding blade operatively associated therewith, said blade comprising a guiding surface and first and second edges, an arm at each end of said blade, a fixed support at each end of said blade, each of said arms pivotally mounted at a pivot point on one of said fixed supports, said pivot points at each end of said blade being in alignment with the first blade edge, a lever for moving said blade about said pivot points, a linkage connecting said blade with one end of said lever, the other end of said lever secured to a shaft, and means to rotate said shaft through a predetermined angular movement whereby said blade guiding surface is selectively moved between a first position whereby said surface is operatively connected with said fold plates and a second position whereby said surface is substantially at right angles to said fold plates.

6. In an apparatus for fold-ing paper the combination of a fold plate and a sheet guiding blade, said fold plate comprising an upper and a spaced apart lower plate forming a sheet receiving space therebetween, said blade positioned in operative relationship with one end of said lower plate, said blade comprising a guiding surface and first and second edges, an arm and a fixed support at each end of said blade, each said arm pivotally mounted at said pivot point on a fixed support, said pivot points at each end of said blade being in alignment with the first blade edge, means secured to said blade for moving the same about said pivot points, and means to actuate said blade moving means for movement between a first position whereby said guiding surface forms an extension of said lower fold plate and a second position whereby said guiding surface is substantially perpendicular to said lower fold plate.

7. In an apparatus for folding paper the combination of spaced apart first and second roll members rotatively mounted in fixed positions, a roll member resiliently mounted between said first and second roll members and contacting said first and second r-oll members, a fold plate positioned opposite said resiliently mounted roll, said fold plate comprising spaced apart upper and lower plates forming a sheet receiving space therebetween, a sheet guiding blade positioned in operative relation with one end of said lower plate, said blade having a sheet guiding surface and first and second edges, means for mounting said blade for pivotal movement about a fixed line extending through said first blade edge and positioned adjacent the point of contact between said first roll and said resiliently mounted roll, and means to actuate said pivotal mounting means whereby said sheet guiding surface of said blade is selectively movable between a first position whereby said sheet guiding surface is operatively associated with said sheet receiving space and a second position whereby said sheet guiding surface is operatively associated with the point of contact between said second roll and said resiliently mounted roll.

8. In an apparatus for folding sheets, the combination of a sheet-feeding roll, a fold plate, a sheet-guiding blade, said fold plate comprising an upper plate and a spacedapart lower plate forming a sheet-receiving space there between, said blade having a sheet-guiding surface on one side thereof and positioned in operative relationship with one end of said lower plate and the surface of said roll, means for mounting said blade for pivotal movement about one edge of said blade on an axis parallel with and adjacent to the surface of said roll, and means to actuate said pivotal mounting means whereby said sheet-guiding surface of said blade is selectively movable between a first position forming an extension of said lower plate to guide sheets fed by said roll into said sheet-receiving space and a second position to deflect sheets from entering said space between said upper and lower plates.

9. In an apparatus for folding sheets, the combination of a fold plate, a sheet-guiding blade, said fold plate comprising an upper plate and a spaced-apart lower plate forming a sheet-receiving space therebetween and said blade having a sheet-guiding surface on one side thereof and being positioned in operative relationship with one end of said lower plate, means for mounting said blade for pivotal movement about a fixed axis extending through one edge of said blade remote from said one end of the lower plate, means for feeding sheets edgewise against said guiding surface adjacent said one edge of the blade, and means to actuate said pivotal mounting means whereby said sheet-guiding surface of said blade is selectively movable between a first position forming an extension of said lower plate to guide sheets into said sheet-receiving space and a second position wherein the other edge of the blade is adjacent said upper plate to deflect sheets from entering said space between said upper and lower plates.

10. An apparatus as defined in claim 9 wherein said sheet-guiding surface of the blade is a substantially plane, flat surface.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 888,343 5/08 Molyneux 271-64 X 1,770,312 7/30 Kleinschmidt 27068 2,492,386 12/49 Little 27l64 2,988,3 55 6/61 Rabinow et al 270-30 X FOREIGN PATENTS 13,712/28 6/29 Australia.

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN AN APPARATUS FOR FOLDING PAPER THE COMBINATION OF A PAIR OF SPACED APART ROLL MEMBERS ROTATIVELY MOUNTED IN FIXED POSITIONS, A ROLL MEMBER RESILIENTLY MOUNTED BETWEEN SAID PAIR OF ROLLS, MEANS TO PRESS SAID RESILIENTLY MOUNTED ROLL INTO CONTACT WITH EACH OF SAID PAIR OF ROLLS, A FOLD PLATE POSITIONED OPPOSITE SAID RESILIENTLY MOUNTED ROLL, SAID FOLD PLATE COMPRISING SPACED APART UPPER AND LOWER PLATES FORMING A SHEET RECEIVING SPACE THEREBETWEEN, A SHEET GUIDING BLADE HAVING A SHEET GUIDING SURFACE BEING PIVOTALLY MOUNTED IN OPERATIVE RELATIONSHIP WITH ONE END OF SAID LOWER FOLD PLATE, MEANS TO MOVE SAID SHEET GUIDING SURFACE OF SAID BLADE BETWEEN A FIRST POSITION FORMING AN EXTENSION OF SAID LOWER FOLD PLATE AND A SECOND POSITION FOR DEFLECTING SHEETS FROM ENTERING SAID SPACE BETWEEN SAID UPPER AND LOWER PLATES. 